Missouri vs. Illinois football preview

Eight months ago, Missouri capped off a dream season with an emphatic victory over Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl.

After a long off-season, the Tigers, ranked sixth in the nation, will kick off the 2008 campaign by facing 20 th ranked Illinois Saturday at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.

Mizzou is the team with National Championship aspirations, and the Tigers do have a superior offense, an underrated defense, and more playmakers than the Fighting Illini on both sides of the ball. Still, Illinois has the ability to put a dent in those title hopes this weekend.

The main area of concern for Missouri is the offensive line, which lost two starters from a year ago and will be starting Elvis Fisher, a redshirt freshman, at tackle. That bodes well for Illinois, which boasts one of the nation’s most ferocious defensive lines, led by end Will Davis. The offensive line was one of the Tigers’ main strengths on offense last year, and if they cannot protect Chase Daniel on Saturday, Illinois could be in great position to steal a win in St. Louis.

At the skill positions, both teams have some of college football’s top athletes lining up on offense. Missouri’s Chase Daniel, one of the finalists for the Heisman Trophy award in 2007, blossomed into a star last year at the quarterback position. He will have plenty of targets to utilize on offense, including wide receiver Jeremy Maclin, tight end Chase Coffman, and running back Derrick Washington. Maclin and Coffman are both two of the Big 12’s top players at their respective positions, while Washington is an emerging back capable of a breakout year in 2008.

Illinois has some star power of its own on the offensive side of the ball. Juice Williams, who was knocked out of last year’s Arch Rivalry game with an injury, compliments his dynamic running ability with a passing game that drastically improved in 2007. The Tigers must keep Williams under control and cannot allow him to roam free in the open field. Even if Mizzou forces Williams to stay in the pocket, he will still have several talented options to turn to. Wide receiver Arrelious Benn, last year’s Big Ten freshman of the year, is similar to Maclin in his versatility offensively and should be even better in 2008. In the backfield, the Illini lost running back Rashard Mendenhall to the NFL. However, with a strong offensive line that has a lot of experience returning, they can still effectively control the clock and keep Missouri’s offense off the field with junior Daniel Dufrene.

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Enough about the offenses. Both Missouri and Illinois are strong defensively as well. The Tigers return 10 of 11 starters from a year ago, including rising star William Moore and a strong group of linebackers. Illinois’ defense will be without linebacker J Leman, but the Illini’s aforementioned defensive line will be their strength on Saturday. In the secondary, junior cornerback Vontae Davis is an All Big-Ten performer, but Illinois did lose both of its safeties from a year ago. Inexperience could plague the Fighting Illini in this area on Saturday, especially because this young secondary will be facing Missouri’s high-octane passing attack.

There will be talent all over the field at the Edward Jones Dome this weekend— there is a reason both teams are ranked in the top 25 to begin the season. The 2008 version of the “Arch Rivalry” may be the most anticipated game in series history. Mizzou squeaked by with a 40-34 victory in 2007 and considering how evenly matched this year’s match-up is, expect some more drama to unfold on Saturday.In the end, though, Missouri will be too much for Illinois to handle. Illinois couldn’t stop Mizzou’s offense last year and as long as the Tigers keep the Illini’s running game under control, they should open the 2008 season with a win.

Final Prediction: Missouri 34, Illinois 21

By Danny Spewak
Big 12 Fans Missouri Correspondent

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